The very first meal I ever cooked for myself in my new apartment was a meal I have made many times before: chicken salad. It’s an easy and fresh way to bring home cooking into your life without it being overwhelming. And a plus side to this recipe is that the chicken kind of tastes like the chicken from Chipotle, so if you’re into that, you’re welcome.

What You'll Need:

1 chicken breast

1 Teaspoon salt

1 Teaspoon pepper

1 Teaspoon garlic powder

1 Teaspoon cumin

1 Teaspoon paprika

Olive Oil

Lettuce

1 Tomato

1 Green onion

1 Small Avocado

Sour cream

Salsa

Let’s get cookin’.

First, get your supple chicken breast and sprinkle it with the dry spices (salt, pepper, garlic powder, cumin, and paprika).

Once your chicken is nice and dusty, drizzle a little olive oil and rub until evenly coated.

Let the chicken rest for a few minutes while it soaks up that flavor. During this time heat up a pan on medium high heat.

Lay the chicken on the hot pan and let it sizzle for about 4 minutes on each side or until it is cooked all the way through.

During this time prepare your salad. Make sure the veggies are all washed and there aren’t any weird bugs hiding in the lettuce (I mention this because I experienced it myself).

Chop the lettuce into strips and cube the avocado and tomatoes. The green onion should be chopped into thin slices.

When your chicken is cooked all the way through, let it rest to reabsorb its juices.

While the chicken is getting all juicy, start assembling you salad. Layer the lettuce, tomato, avocado and green onion in a pile. Sprinkle a little pinch of salt over the tomato and avocado to season them.

Slice the chicken into bite sized chunks and lay them on top of your veggie mountain. At this time you can dollop your sour cream and salsa to complete your chicken salad.

It sounds really simple but trust me, it may be the best homemade chicken salad you will ever eat.

Pro tip: Layer your salad on top of a tortilla so you can roll up into a burrito. It’s healthy but not too healthy.